A TRAVELLING circus has hit out at calls for residents to boycott its performances.

Flyers calling for the boycott were distributed to Kelbrook residents on Wednesday, just before the Circus Mondao was due to put on its first show.

The leaflet made a number of suggestions why the circus could be bad for the community.

It complained that the circus could affect house prices, was an eyesore and a noise nuisance, and that wild animals were "on the loose".

The leaflet came after some residents living near the Big Top, on a field next to the roundabout on the A56, said Circus Mondao was an "incredible imposition" when it arrived on Sunday for a week-long stay.

But the circus said the majority of residents were backing the circus, and the first show on Wednesday night was full to capacity.

Petra Jackson, of Circus Mondao, said: "We were packed to the rafters for our first performances, and people came up to us to say that they disagreed with the people who were complaining. We are travellers in the sense that we do travel round the country. We're a traditional circus.

"I've been in the business 15 years and many of the troupe are from a traditional circus family.

"We're no danger to anyone.

"As for wild animals, we've got a couple of zebras who are well-trained and well- cared for - it's not as if we've got lions on the loose.

"I don't understand why people aren't happy to have family events in the village. We have had a lot of support from a lot of people and I hope we will be back next year."

The leaflet also mentions concerns over parking and traffic, and asks residents to "show solidarity" with the community by boycotting, to stop the performers coming to the village again.

Graham Jagger, of Colne Road, complained about the circus in the Lancashire Telegraph earlier this week, but said the leaflets were nothing to do with him.

He said: "I completely disassociate myself from this. The complaint I have against the circus, as with the car boot sales on that field, is that it is in the wrong place.

"These people have every right to earn their living and this leaflet is not the way I would go about things."

The circus will hold performances in Kelbrook until Sunday.